Three companies agreed to leave the public markets in the span of an August week, and read together they are a short lesson in how take-private deals move risk around. The headline is the same each time. The terms are not.
Start with the cleanest one. Accelerant, an insurance platform, agreed to be acquired by private-equity firm Thoma Bravo for $20.25 per share in cash, a deal the buyer values at an enterprise value of more than $4 billion [1]. Thoma Bravo put the price at a "49% premium to Accelerant's closing share price on August 12, 2026" [1]. The vote looks close to settled: entities affiliated with Altamont Capital Partners, holding roughly 82% of Accelerant's outstanding voting rights, have already agreed to vote in favor [1]. Chairman and CEO Jeff Radke framed the move around the buyer's resources, saying that "returning to private ownership with Thoma Bravo's technology and software expertise, coupled with its vast financial and strategic resources, will enable us to make investments" [1]. The company expects to close in the first half of 2027 [1].
Harte Hanks, a marketing-services firm with a century-long history, is a different animal. Star Equity Holdings agreed to acquire it for $5.00 per share, valuing Harte Hanks at approximately $38.4 million in equity [2]. The catch is the currency. Per the agreement, "up to 50% of the aggregate consideration will be paid in cash, with the balance, which may exceed 50%, paid in Star 10% Series A Cumulative Perpetual Preferred Stock" [2]. In plain terms, a Harte Hanks holder could end up with more than half of that $5.00 not as cash but as preferred shares paying a 10% dividend, an instrument whose value depends on Star's ability to keep paying. The deal carries a 30-day go-shop period during which Harte Hanks can solicit competing bids, and is "anticipated to close before year end 2026" [2]. Star CEO Jeff Eberwein said, "We are excited to announce the signing of this merger agreement. Harte Hanks is a business we have followed for years, with a century-long heritage, blue-chip clients, and talented people" [2]. As a separate matter, Star projects the combined company will carry pro-forma fiscal 2025 revenue of about $384 million, a company-wide figure that should not be confused with the $38.4 million equity price for Harte Hanks alone [2].
The third deal is the one where the mechanics bite. LivePerson is asking its shareholders to approve a sale to SoundHound AI at a special meeting on August 20, 2026, and most holders would receive SoundHound stock "valued at approximately $3.33 per share," which LivePerson describes as a 22% premium over its own 30-day volume-weighted average price before the April 21, 2026 announcement [3]. That premium is measured against a different yardstick than Accelerant's: LivePerson's is a premium to a month-long average from months ago, while Accelerant's 49% is against a single closing price the day before its deal. The two numbers are not comparable, and blending them would flatter one deal or the other.
What makes the LivePerson vote a squeeze is the approval threshold. The merger needs "the affirmative vote of a majority of all outstanding shares of LivePerson common stock," not merely a majority of shares that show up [3]. That distinction is the whole game for a company with scattered retail ownership. As the company itself warns, "failing to vote has the exact same effect as voting 'AGAINST' the merger" [3]. A holder who ignores the proxy is not neutral; they are counted, in effect, as a No, which is why the company is publicly pressing turnout in the days before the meeting.
Three companies, three exits, three different answers to the same question: what does a shareholder actually get. Accelerant's holders get cash and near-certainty. Harte Hanks' holders may get a dividend-paying paper they did not ask for. LivePerson's holders get a deadline and a warning that silence works against them.
